


Hurricane Betty

by edgelordjonesthethird



Category: Riverdale (TV 2017)
Genre: Character Death, F/M, Falling In Love, Sad Ending, Suicide, Triggers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-07
Updated: 2017-10-07
Packaged: 2019-01-10 09:56:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,500
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12296748
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/edgelordjonesthethird/pseuds/edgelordjonesthethird
Summary: There is a storm coming and it’s going to leave wreckage in its path.





	Hurricane Betty

**Author's Note:**

> Just a little warning, proceed with caution, there are mentions of mental illness, and suicide.

I  
The night of his sixteenth birthday Jughead kissed Betty’s hands, and some would say that healed her, but he wasn’t that wishy washy, he knew Betty better than that. He knew her possibly better than anybody, even Archie, he knew that this girl needed some help; help that a kiss, a hug, or some reassuring words couldn’t give her. She needed professional help, but getting her to admit that was a battle all on its own. She tried to hide it, but he was bound to stumble across it more than once. The darkness he referred to as Hurricane Betty, you never really knew what to expect from it, how bad it would be, the damage it would leave behind.  
Jughead approached the Cooper House, trading in his Serpent jacket for his long-discarded flannel lined denim one, he didn’t feel like dealing with Alice Cooper’s judgmental looks that night; he just wanted to get to Betty. When he knocked on the door opened immediately, he was greeted by a beautiful blonde but not the one he expected; Polly stood in front of him, her eyes knitted with worry while one of her twins, Molly, clung to her side.  
“Hey Jughead.” Polly greeted with a forced smile. “Say Hi to Uncle Juggie, Molly.” She added, stiffly, taking the little girl’s hand to wave at Jughead.  
“Hey Poll,” he responded as reached out to tickle Molly’s foot extracting a small giggle from the infant. “Hey, little girl.”  
“Thank god, you’re here,” Polly whispered, harshly. “I need back up.”  
“I’m not being tricked into changing J.J.’s diaper again.” Jughead deadpanned.  
“No, it’s Betty.” The elder Cooper sibling sighed. “Something’s wrong with her, this happens from time to-“  
Jughead didn’t even give Polly the time to finish her thoughts, the next thing he knew was he was bolting up the stairs towards Betty’s bedroom. He pushed the door open, where Betty frantically paced around the room; her opened geography book was tucked in the crook of her arms, she was mumbling to herself something about the Antarctic Peninsula. Jughead had always known his girlfriend to be studious, but the speed that she was moving at was frightening; he had still yet to be noticed, even with the veracity he had opened the door with.  
Jughead moved towards his girlfriend, grabbing her shoulders, causing her to shutter. “Oh, Hey Jug, is it time for the movie already?” Betty was suddenly her calm, cool, collected self again; a complete different person than the one she was a millisecond ago. “Sorry, I just have this big Geography midterm tomorrow, and it’s not my best subject.”  
“I know, we’ve gone places together, we usually need google maps to get around a tree when you navigate.” Jughead teased, wrapping his girlfriend in his arms. “We could stay in instead and I could help you study?”  
Betty hesitated for a moment before shaking her head. “No, we have a horror movie marathon to watch,” she declared. “I can study a bit when I get home.”  
“Are you sure?” Jughead rubbed the backs of her arms. “I don’t mind staying in as long as I am with you.”  
“No, we should do this, just let me grab my cardigan I let Polly borrow.” Betty handed the book to Jughead and turned to leave the room.  
Jughead looked down at the book, immediately frowning; on the hard cover of the book were two bloody palm prints, she was back at it again. He wished he knew how to help her but he really didn’t. Betty entered the room again, a pastel pink cardigan on her shoulders. “Alright, let’s blow this popsicle stand.” She giggled, before whispering in his ear; a slight blush tinged her cheeks. “And maybe something else.”  
Since the first time they had been intimate, she had tried to be more seductive at times, but usually failed; that was something sexy within itself. Jughead took her hands and placed a kiss on the palms of her hands. “Is there something you wanted to talk to me about?” He asked, hopefully. “Anything I can help you with?”  
“No?” Betty dismissed. “Well one thing, actually.”  
“Which would be?” Jughead was hopeful.  
“Should we have raisinets or snow caps tonight?” She grinned, lacing their arms together. “I am feeling chocolate tonight.”  
Jughead recognizes this technique of hers; deference, it’s what had led to his nightmarish birthday party, nothing good ever came of it. However, he didn’t probe her anymore; he was afraid it would push her further away, further over the edge. When it comes to Betty Cooper, things usually have to get worse before they become some semblance of better.  
“Why not both?” Jughead suggested, feigning a smile. “I just got paid tonight, on me.”  
II  
The outing seemed to calm Betty, she is smiling and light when he gives her a kiss on her doorstep that night. There is a storm coming, he knew this from Betty’s body language the next morning when he walked into the Blue and Gold office. Jughead would never consider himself an expert in body language, but he would consider himself a connoisseur on most things Betty; he had done enough exploring to earn the title. Betty is hunched over the desk her notebook opened in front of her; her eyes scanned wildly over the notes in front of her, while hand lay clenched supporting her weight as the other flipped the paper.  
“Betty?” He frowned. “What’s going on?”  
The beautiful blonde’s fingers dug deeper into the palms of her hand, she didn’t bother to look up. “I failed my test.” She rambled, “I should have just stayed in last night, I am so stupid!”  
Jughead walked over and pulled her away from the desk; she felt tense his body, she didn’t offer a bit of slack when he pulled her against his body. “Hey, it happens, we all fail a test from time to time.” He assured her or at least tried.  
Betty didn’t seem to be buying anything he said that morning; she wrenched herself away from and slammed her palm against the desk, a telltale bloody hand print against the oak. “No, it’s not okay, you wanna explain this to my mother!” she growled.  
Jughead had never seen her like this, he watched as she struggled to get her breath out; it’s clear she was having an anxiety attack and he wasn’t about to take anything in those moments seriously. He decided in those moments to keep his distance; he would keep her wishes. It was agony to see her like that, he wanted to make everything better.  
“Betty…” He sighed. “Relax, she’ll be upset but then again she is upset about most things.” The corner of his lips turned upward, slightly, wanted nothing more than to lighten the atmosphere for her.  
Unfortunately, his efforts did not work. “It’s not funny, if I don’t get good grades, I won’t get out of this place and I will be stuck in Riverdale.” She yelled, with a stomp of her foot.  
Jughead had never heard her raise her voice like that before. It scared him. “Betty, what’s going on, talk to me.” He pleaded, this time he didn’t dare take a step toward her.  
Betty started to shove her books back into her bag. “I can’t do this right now, Jughead.” She sighed, “I really wish I could, but I can’t.”  
“Can’t what…?” Jughead trailed off. “Study…or you and I?”  
“You and I.” Betty’s voice cracked, “I just have so much going on right now.”  
“A-are you serious?” Jughead never thought this would happen, but a girl was making his check constrict right now. “Why…Betty just let me help you, whatever it is, I can help you…Betts, please.” And now he was pleading which he had only done once when his mother left.  
“I’m sorry, Juggie.” She whimpered and placed a kiss to his cheek. “I wish it didn’t have to be like this.”  
II  
Jughead seemed to be walking through a cloud the next week and a half, it was like he was on autopilot. Betty had turned over her position of editor and chief of The Blue and Gold to Ethel. Ethel. He knew things were bound to be awkward, but the school paper had been Betty’s baby and he thought she would never give that up for the world. Then again, he also thought he wasn’t quite as easily disposable to her as he had been.  
He sat at his usual table, knowing that Betty wouldn’t appear; Veronica plopped down across from him, she had a sympathetic look on her face; oddly enough she had always been the biggest supporter of their coupling. Ronnie’s perfectly manicured hand went up to pass over an envelope, he recognized the pastel pink as a piece of Betty’s stationary; “Juggie” neatly written on the envelope. The ache in his heart didn’t dull, if anything it just turned it into a searing pain.  
“What’s that?” Jughead grunted and took a large bite of his burger.  
Veronica bit her lip and he wondered what lipstick she used that it didn’t stain her teeth. “It’s from Betty,” she explained, softly.  
“What could she possibly have to say to me now?” Jughead sneered and snatched the envelope from her hand.  
“Hopefully an apology,” Veronica admitted. “You two were good together; she was more confident and you seemed happier and less like a prick.”  
“I thought you were Team B foreva.” Jughead deadpanned, toying with the envelope in his hand; he could feel something besides paper within. Now he was curious.  
“I am, but part of being Team B is thinking of her happiness, and part of that happiness is you.”  
The East Side princess and the Southside weirdo always had that one thing in common; Betty’s happiness had always been one of the most important things to the both of them. It didn’t matter they weren’t together anymore, he knew deep down in his heart that he still wanted her to be happy. Jughead gave in and ripped the envelope; her famous lock and key necklace fell into his hands, a whiff of her soft floral perfume followed; finally, the pink stationary.  
Juggie,  
I can’t do this anymore, any of it, I thought time apart would make this easier on you. This is for you, to remind you of me, that you’ll always have the key to my heart. I love you until my last breath, never forget that.  
Until we meet again,  
Betty  
Jughead didn’t know when it happened, but tears started to prick his eyes; he had been too stupid to ignore his gut. He was on his feet in seconds startling Veronica. “Jughead, what’s going on?” she asked, quickly  
“Call an ambulance, and send it to Betty’s!”  
III  
It was very rare that Jughead wished he had a car, it wasn’t because he was particularly conscious about the environment; he just usually enjoyed the time walking gave him to think. But it didn’t seem like the time right now, racing across town to the Cooper’s; when a situation might have been life or death. How had he not seen the signs sooner? Breaking up with him so abruptly, giving away her closest possessions, the flip out she had over something so small.  
Jughead ran past the walkway that led to the door towards the familiar ladder; he always been kind of weary about climbing it, the thing was old and rickety, but he had always pushed past that at the thought of seeing Betty. Today, he felt no fear just pure adrenaline; he went to pull the window up but sadly it was locked, a habit he figured she took up after their tragic “uncoupling.” Nothing was going to stop him from saving her, though; he threw his body towards the window shattering it.  
Nobody stirred, that worried him more; he heard the bathtub running and nearly ripped the door off its hinges trying to open it. The site before him was one that would never leave his mind; there Betty laid completely naked submerged in blood and water. He felt his knees start to give in, he collapsed to the ground; crawling over to her quickly and pulling her out of the water.  
Jughead could still feel her heart beating faintly against him, it wasn’t too late, just barely, though. He rocked her body back and forth, having to force the air in and out of his own lungs. “Betty!” He sobbed, pulling her to his chest “God, Betty, why?”  
He reached over grasping for towels, the month he spent in Boy Scouts; the one month of attempted normalcy paid off, as did the badge in first aid he earned. Jughead quickly tied homemade tourniquets around her wrists. From the lack of ambulance, he could tell Veronica never called, why would she? All he was doing was running on a whim  
Jughead pulled his phone out, “I-I need an ambulance, the Cooper residence, please!” he yelled.  
IV  
Betty fell into a coma on the ride to the hospital; he was the one grasping her hand on the way there. Two days later she was gone, all brain function was gone, and the Coopers decided to take her off life support. The next week she was buried, a simple service held with pink roses placed on her coffin.  
Jughead sat there after the service, tugging at the eye of his ill-fitting suit; he couldn’t bring himself to part from her at this moment. Everybody had proceeded to the wake at the Cooper residence, where Betty had taken her last non- artificial breaths. He didn’t think he could bring himself to go back there right now. A hand grazed his shoulder causing him to jump; he would recognize those well-manicured hands anywhere.  
“Jug?” Veronica took a seat next to him. “I know it’s stupid to ask if you’re okay, but are you okay?”  
“You’re right, it is stupid.” Jughead growled, “what do you want, Veronica, why didn’t you just call the damn ambulance like I asked?”  
“You’re not blaming me, are you, Jughead?” Veronica looked positively scandalized. “How dare you blame me, I didn’t know what was going on, I loved her, she was my best friend!”  
Veronica was right, grief had been causing him to think irrationally. “I know, I’m sorry.” He broke, “I loved her why wasn’t it enough, why?”  
The raven-haired girl wrapped her arms around his lean frame. “I know, Jughead, I know.” She crooned, massaging his shoulders. “I know, we all loved her, but she was sick, Jughead.”  
“I never got a chance to say it to her.”  
The two were silent for a while, Jughead had never seen Veronica go speechless before, yet here it was. When she finally talked again, he jumped; maybe because he hadn’t been expecting it or because of the heaviness in the truth of the words.  
“Sometimes love just isn’t enough.”

**Author's Note:**

> For more stories and shit posts follow me on tumblr: fiftyshamesofdevingray.tumblr.com


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